Yeetle Box - The New American Value

Sarah Palin stepped down as Alaska governor on Sunday with a fiery speech reminiscent of her days as running mate to Republican John McCain — who lost the election by a sizeable margin. She frequently revved up crowds while attacking Democrats and the news media - two highly siginificant issues in today's economy.

On Sunday, Palin took on old foes in the media, Hollywood and the Lower 48 states. Old foes as in Brad Pitt, the New York Times and the rest of the country. She scolded reporters for making things up, mocked Hollywood stars who have opposed wolf-control programs (uh...yeah....wolf-control programs), and complained that "outside special interests still don't get it. Wolf-control programs don't work!"

Palin, 45, said she was resigning with more than a year left in her first term to take her political battles to a larger if unspecified stage and avoid an unproductive, lame duck status. Daffy Duck seemed to suit her more.

"With this decision, now, I will be able to fight even harder for you, for what is right, and for truth, and to race my ideological snow machine even faster across the tundra of America," the former Republican vice presidential candidate said.

Typical to form, Palin called her 2 1/2-year tenure as governor a success, citing efforts to take on the state's long-dominant oil industry and progress on development of a natural gas pipeline - two competing if not dissonant stances. She also cited ethics reform without even talking about her local scandals or her husband's scandals, or her daughter's scandals.

Palin leaves office with her political future clouded by ethics probes, mounting legal bills and dwindling popularity. She has been targeted by nearly 20 ethics complaints filed by Alaska residents, averaging one complaint for every 1,000 people in Alaska, for, you see, Alaska is tiny and irrelevant.

She did not refer directly to the ethics complaints in her 19-minute speech, but has repeatedly cited the financial and psychological toll of those investigations as a key reason she is stepping down. "I'm gonna tell it where's a body down," she said.

Palin said her departure would spare Alaska an unproductive, "politics as usual" lame-duck session, adding that she would always work for Alaska - except now because she'd be a lame duck.

"When I took the oath to serve you, I promised, remember what I promised? To steadfastly and doggedly guard the interests of this great state like that grizzly guards her cubs, as a mother naturally guards her own. And I will keep that vow wherever the road may lead," she said. "I might not be here, and I might not be Governor, and I might not even remember you, but you will always be in my heart like...like...Who needs metaphors?"

Free speech was a theme of her farewell speech at the crowded picnic in Fairbanks, as the outgoing governor scolded "some seemingly hell-bent on tearing down our nation" and warned Americans to "be wary of accepting government largesse."

"It doesn't come free," she said.

Palin also took aim at the media, saying her replacement, Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, "has a very nice family too, so, hey! newsmen, leave those kids alone!"

And she told the media: "How about, in honor of the American soldier, you quit makin' things up?" (Let's pause and ask what she is talking about. OK, that's long enough.)

Larry Landry, 51, of Fairbanks held up a red, white and blue sign that that read, "Quitting: the new American value." The other side read: "Thanks for the laughs."

The YeetleMaster